When Harry and Esther Snyder launched In-N-Out Burger back in 1948, their plan was simple — give customers the best burgers around and make them want to come back for more.

That tiny 10-foot-by-10-foot building at Francisquito and Garvey avenues in Baldwin Park was California’s first drive-through hamburger stand. And it launched a family enterprise that today includes nearly 300 locations.

On Tuesday, the company unveiled a replica of that first hamburger stand at the company’s Baldwin Park headquarters — complete with an old-fashioned two-way speaker system and a red and white striped awning.

A menu sign posting In-N-Out prices from 1948 clearly showed that things have changed. Burgers were 25 cents, cheeseburgers were 30 cents, french fries were 15 cents and cold drinks were just a dime.

Tom Evans, Snyder’s very first hire, was on hand for Tuesday’s unveiling. And it brought back plenty of memories.

“I was on the G.I. bill back then and I had run out of money and needed a job,” the 87-year-old Fallbrook resident recalled. “So I walked up to the window and Harry said, ‘What would you like?’ I said I wanted a job! That was my introduction to Harry Snyder.”

Members of several area car clubs were also on hand for Tuesdays’ unveiling.

“We go to the In-N-Out in Covina,” said Carl Conklin, president of Midnighters Customs, Southern California, a Norwalk car club. “It’s become a tradition every Thursday.”

When Harry Snyder died in 1976, his sons Rich and Guy took over as president and vice president, respectively.

The company later added an In-N-Out University for the training of entry-level managers, and in 1989 an In-N-Out store was opened. The store features everything from company-branded T-shirts and beach towels to the over-sized safety pins that are used to secure In-N-Out employees’ aprons.

Rich Snyder died in 1993, leaving Guy to take over as chairman of the board with Esther assuming the role of president. Guy later died in 1999 and Esther died in 2006.

Lynsi Snyder, Harry’s granddaughter, is at the helm today, serving as president of In-N-Out.

There are plenty of burger chains around, but consumers have developed an almost cult-like following for In-N-Out.

And the secret to the company’s success?

“We keep it simple,” Snyder said. “And we are tied to the early days of California’s cool cars. But the growth has been unreal. When I see the In-N-Out signs on the freeway I think back to how it used to be with my grandparents ... they changed so many lives.”

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Today the chain has 292 locations in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Texas.

“We’ll be opening some more,” said Carl Van Fleet, the company’s vice president of planning and development. “We have restaurants under construction in the Austin area and in Encinitas.”